OPEN HEAVEN DAILY DEVOTIONAL: FRIDAY FEBRUARY 28TH 2025

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TOPIC: UNDERSTANDING HARVESTS MEMORIZE : While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. Genesis 8:22 READ : Mark 4:26-29  26 And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; 27 And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how. 28 For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear. 29 But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come. MESSAGE The first thing to understand about harvests is that they ultimately come from God. 1 Corinthians 3:6 says, "I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase." Also, harvests come in different levels, which Jesus identified as thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and hundredfold (Mark 4:20). Some Bible scholars believe that a thirtyfold harvest results from...

OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL. LAMENTATION AS PRAISE! THURSDAY 26 FEBRUARY 2015


Memorise:

For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. Psalm 30:5

Read: Psalm 30:7-12

7 LORD, by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong: thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled.

8 I cried to thee, O LORD; and unto the LORD I made supplication.

9 What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?

10 Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me: LORD, be thou my helper.

11 Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;

12 To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.


Message

A lamentation is a song mourning or sorrow. In the Bible, lamentations were usually motivated by national disasters (2 Chronicles 35:25), by bereavement (2Samuel 3:33-34), personal suffering (Psalm 102:1-11) or by the judgment of God (Amos 5:1-2). Lamentations could also be inspired by repentance as shown in Daniel 9:4-20.

A lamentation can contain praise of express thanksgiving and gratitude to the Almighty God. Such was the lamentation of Daniel in Daniel 9. It was laced with praises to God even though He was mourning the captivity of the children of Israel. No wonder the Lord heard his lamentation and quickly dispatched an archangel to conform him. Jesus in Matthew 5:4 said:

“Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.”

This reveals that there is blessedness even in mourning. There is still a reason to glorify God for His goodness and His mercy even in morning. It shows that though there is lamentation, there will be clear reasons to praise God at the end. Singing songs of sorrow can therefore lead to comfort.

An example of sorrow leading to comfort is seen when we lament for our sins, mistakes and errors in such a way that leads to genuine repentance. Such repentance leads to righteousness.

“Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.”
2nd Corinthians 7:9-10

In the above passage, the lamentation and sorrow of the Corinthians led to repentance. Paul rejoiced to see this genuine repentance take place in the life of the people. Godly sorrow brings repentance unto salvation. What started as lamentation or a song of sorrow, produced reasons to praise God at the end. Lamentation becomes a source of praise when godly sorrow produces genuine repentance. Such repentance leads to the joy of salvation, divine approval and blessing. 

Prayer point :

Father, let your Church experience godly sorrow that leads to genuine repentance in Jesus’ Name.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR : EZEKIEL 19-20 and REVELATION 7

AUTHOR : Pastor E.A. ADEBOYE

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